Today we head off to Munich and with our reservation already purchased we have lots of time to organize and check out. The metro system in Venice is excellent so it is not an issue to arrive and get the train. Once again we are in first class but we are not able to get window seats. Instead we sit across from each other at a table seat and beside us is a couple. She is 6 months pregnant and they are taking a 4 day weekend holiday to relax. She says this is the last holiday they will take before the baby is born.
This couple are getting off at Salzburg and taking a different train to their final destination. Since they were both very fluent in English we spent the entire time on the train chatting about everything from the Austria history, political situation, the European Common Unit, etc. We learned a lot about their perspective of life in Europe at this time. He is a Train Engineer by trade and definitely had his opinions. We really enjoyed our visit and time on the train with this couple.
After they left we continued on to Munich (they definitely do not like Germans but this is a common sentiment with Austrians apparently) and arrived at the train station on time. As we walked out of the station we had our blackberry with a pdf map showing us how to walk to our hotel. What surprised us is that the map had us leaving the front entrance of the railway station, but by accident we left by one of the side entrances. This actually was to our benefit since it put us right at the intersection we would have had to walk around to find and the hotel was just down the block. We are about 100 meters from the railway station.
The hotel is really modern looking but that is because it has been recently renovated. When we got to the room we discovered that it is on the south side of the hotel, has two very large windows and since they were closed but the curtains were open, the room was really hot. There is not air condition, but we discovered how the windows opened, figured out there were shutters on the outside that we could close and it was not long before the room became comfortable. This is good since the hotel is full so we could not change rooms even if we wanted to.
We can buy internet time at 3.90 Euro per 24 hours so we decided to wait for one day to do so. We have all our plans in place and the only thing that is not possible is for me to upload my blog.
Since we have most of the afternoon available to us and the sun is shining brightly, we decide to go and explore the city. We kept our eyes open for an Tourist Information center as we walked around. Wes read in the Lonely Planet book that there is a Munich day and 3 day pass we could purchase which would give us use of the metro, trams and buses. In addition he had been looking at things for us to explore while we are here. We needed to get confirmation and figure out what would work best for us.
The options included a guided biking tour of Munich, a tour of the BMW Plant and museum, a visit to the 1972 Olympic park and swimming venue, museums, galleries and parks. Obviously with only 3 days here we had to short list. The biking sounded good and the brochure indicated where to find the company to get details. This was in the Marienplatz by the Fishfountain.
So since the Marienplatz is inside the walled city of Munich and considered a must to see area we decided to start there. It was a short walk from the tourist information center to Karlsplatz, which is at one end of the walled city, to the other end which is Marienplatz. We went to the area for the biking company and there was no sign of them. We figured if they were hard to locate and did not meet where their brochure indicated, it was a good sign to move on and cut this option.
I should mention that the walk from Karlplatz to Marienplatz is a distance of about 3 blocks and it is a pedestrian only area. The historical buildings we walked by were impressive. However the main ones have a picture of the front in place and there is renovations occurring behind the masks. We walked by the Frauenkirche which is considered to be a landmark of Munich and it was constructed in 1468-1488. In the Marienplatz is the old and new town hall. This area of the city is definitely tourist oriented and there are crowds walking up and down the mall enjoying many beer gardens, sidewalk cafes and coffee shops.
We decided that we should continue on and try to explore other areas of Munich so we started to explore and head off towards the Hofgarten (park) which involved walking around several narrow and old streets giving us a chance to see some of the old buildings but we have no idea of their history or uses today.
The Hofgarten park was interesting to walk through but it is too early to see any displays of flowers. There were a few spring flowers in bloom, but mostly we saw flower beds prepped for planting but this was not the time to look for the beautiful gardens reported to us to check out.
From there we walked over to the English Garden which is about 15 minutes further on. Although this is called a garden, I would say it is really a very substantial park with lots of open grassy fields for play and lay opportunities. Through the park is a stream that flows very quickly with a few bridges. There are a few ‘waterfalls’ or water features to enjoy as you walk. What we read in the Lonely Planet is that this park is well used for sun bathers. And it is very common for the sun bathers to do so nude. Even though the sun was shining and was very warm, the air was still a bit spring cool. We only notice a couple of nude bathers but the park was crowded with those enjoying sitting in the sun, reading, picnicking or just socializing with friends.
At the far side of the park we climbed a small hill to have a look at a Greek temple with a commanding view around the city. There were musicians playing and entertaining those who ventured to the top which was very nice.
We walked back through the park and wound our way back to the hotel after spending about 4 hours exploring the center part of Munich. This is a very energetic city and if you want to explore museums, old buildings and modern, art galleries or other historical venues, you would love being here. We will have to decide tonight what we will do tomorrow and the day after since we can not do everything. Check tomorrow’s blog to discover what we decided.
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